"I Can't Wait for the Puck to Drop"

Last month, millions of people across North America watched the latest chapter in one of the most storied rivalries in all of sports, as Canada defeated the United States by a score of 3-2 in the women's hockey gold medal game all the way across the world in Beijing.
"I think it just speaks to where women's hockey is and where it's going," Team USA superstar forward Hilary Knight said.
And this weekend, it's coming to Pittsburgh, as the Penguins and the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) are hosting a
"Rivalry Rematch" on Saturday at PPG Paints Arena
.

The unofficial rematch, which will feature virtually the entire rosters both teams used in Beijing, will be a historic event. It marks the first time since women's hockey was introduced at the Olympics in 1998 that the two absolute titans will face off so soon following the Games.
"I think it's huge," said Team Canada breakout star Sarah Nurse. "Obviously coming off that game, there's a lot of pride still on the line. I think any time we get to play, there's a lot of pride. It doesn't matter if it's an exhibition game, it doesn't matter if it's at the Olympics.
"So it's going to be pretty fast-paced hockey, it's going to be good hockey, and it's going to be pretty physical, so we'll have to be ready for that (laughs). But we're very excited, and I think it's going to be an awesome matchup."
Especially because, as Knight pointed out, they're no longer playing under the heavy pressure that comes with four years of buildup and anticipation after Team USA won gold in the 2018 Olympics.
"So I'm excited to see sort of that next level of freedom and creativity get unlocked with this game," she said. "But then also, at the end of the day, it's USA versus Canada. You never know what's going to happen, right? (Laughs) So it's just a wonderful time. And I'm so, so grateful that the Penguins are putting this together, and we get to do it in a hockey city."
Nurse said that when the players learned that they would be returning to Pittsburgh after the Penguins
hosted a joint training camp for the U.S. and Canada
in November 2019 to replace the canceled Four Nations Cup, they couldn't have been more excited.
"It's funny - that Pittsburgh event that we were at a few years ago, that's one we still talk about today, because we were actually very overwhelmed with how well Pittsburgh hosted us," Nurse said. "So we're very excited that we're able to come back and put on a show in Pittsburgh again."
After the U.S. and Canada met in a number of Rivalry Series games that December through February following their week in Pittsburgh, everything was put on pause because of the pandemic.
They resumed international play with the 2021 World Championship last August, where Canada's Marie-Philip Poulin -
aka Captain Clutch
- scored in overtime of the title game. Following that tournament, team got a congratulatory message from another captain who's scored some pretty big goals for Canada in his day.
"We were able to hear from Sidney after the World Championship this year, which was pretty cool," Nurse said. "Obviously, he's a highly decorated player, and a Team Canada legend. So it's been great to have that support."
Then, in the months leading into the Olympics, both teams were able to centralize. The United States Women's National Team Residency Program was in Minnesota, while Canada's was in Calgary. Both Knight and Nurse said that being able to train together full-time had such a huge impact on the caliber of play.
"I think when I look at Team USA and Team Canada, we were all able to have access to our coaches, video, skills coaches, strength and conditioning coaches - which we don't normally have access to all the time," Nurse said. "So the fact that we were able to do that just like an NHL team, we were able to elevate our game and work on that team chemistry and work on our skills so that when you look at us on offense, it looks pretty good. It's very seamless, it's very flawless, we're interchangeable."
Team Canada scored a whopping 57 goals in the tournament, with Nurse, 27, setting an Olympic record for points in a single tournament with 18 (5G-13A).
"Going in, I was injured. It was my first game at the Olympics since like October," Nurse said. "I didn't really have expectations. I wanted to be in the lineup, I wanted to make an impact wherever I could, and it just happened to be on the scoresheet in a few games."
Knight, 32, now holds the all-time record for most Olympic games played by an American female hockey player with 22, and is a four-time medalist with one gold and three silver. After debuting with the senior national team as a teenager, she has become a generational talent who is one of the best to ever lace up the skates. It's been amazing for her to watch the on-ice product just get better and better throughout her career.
"To be honest, just from when I entered the game at the national team level to now, the speed and just the sheer excellence that people have is incredible," she said. "And I don't see the game slowing down anytime soon."
Off the ice, Knight, Nurse and the rest of their teammates take the role of being a role model very seriously. Their dreams were all sparked at one point or another by watching women's teams play in the Olympics - Knight with Team USA in 1998, and Nurse with Team Canada in 2002.
Nurse said knowing they can be that for future generations of girls gives her goosebumps, and Knight added that an event like this is so valuable and important towards continuing the impressive growth on the women's side.
"To have that visibility now in a big arena with fans that are extremely ecstatic about having us there with an organization and club that's equally as ecstatic about having us there - very, very exciting things all around, and I can't wait for the puck to drop," Knight said.